I applied online. The process took 2 weeks. I interviewed at Nordstrom (Los Angeles, CA) in Mar 2014
Interview
1st round was a phone interview with basic questions such as why nordstrom and explain a time in which you exhibited excellent customer service. 2nd round was an in person interview in which similar but more in depth questions were asked in order to get to know me. More or less once you get past the video questions for the most part they just want to get to know you and check for any red flags.
It was a good interview experience. The managers were straight forward and nice throughout the whole process. The questions were directly related to the role. They were transparent about the role and expectations.
I applied online. The process took 5 days. I interviewed at Nordstrom (San Antonio, TX) in Sep 2025
Interview
it was a really chill and easy interview, the manager was very warm and friendly and none of the questions were too difficult. there was a sale practice section where you have to pretend to sell an item to a customer, but it wasn't too difficult and the manager gave me some guidance and clarification on the practice scenarios. other questions included things along the lines of how you deal with competition, conflict, unhappy customers, teamwork, as well as availability
mock sale questions: what features of this item would you point out to the customer? what concerns or hesitations might the customer have about this item and how would you help them decide? after the customer decides they want the item, how would you close the sale?
I applied through other source. I interviewed at Nordstrom (Tacoma, WA) in Jul 2025
Interview
Extremely easy. I looked the part and got the job. My manager called me the same day to welcome me to the team. They like for their employees to have their own personal style that’s appropriate and makes others want to buy.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Why Nordstrom? How would you handle a difficult customer?
Retail Sales Associate applicants have rated the interview process at Nordstrom with 2.4 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 78% positive. To compare, the company-average is 73.2% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Retail Sales Associate roles take an average of 10 days to get hired, when considering 328 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Nordstrom overall takes an average of 14 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Nordstrom as a Retail Sales Associate according to 328 Glassdoor interviews include:
One on one interview: 29%
Phone interview: 29%
Skills test: 7%
Personality test: 7%
Presentation: 7%
Background check: 6%
Group panel interview: 6%
Drug test: 5%
IQ intelligence test: 4%
Other: 2%
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